NDC’S NATIONAL SERVICE FIASCO: VICTIMS DEMAND THEIR GH¢41 NOW
On Friday, 20th June 2025, the National Service Authority (NSA), operating under an NDC-led government, announced the commencement of National Service registration. Thousands of potential service personnel complied in good faith, each paying GH¢41 to register. That payment was not a gift; it was a compulsory fee demanded by the state. Citizens obeyed.
Then came the shock.
Barely weeks later, the same Authority announced a fresh registration exercise, admitting by implication that the first process was flawed. The NDC government promised that all monies paid for the initial registration would be refunded. That promise was clear. It was public. It was binding.
Today, that promise remains broken.
From 20th June 2025 to date, affected service personnel have not received their GH¢41 refunds. Multiply GH¢41 by tens of thousands of applicants, and the picture becomes disturbing. This is not small money. This is the hard-earned income of graduates, many of whom are unemployed and struggling in an economy already battered by poor governance.
This is the core issue: indecision, poor planning, and zero accountability.
Under the National Service Authority Act, 2020 (Act 1010), the NSA is mandated to administer national service efficiently and in the public interest. Efficiency does not mean collecting fees twice. Public interest does not mean holding on to citizens’ money indefinitely after admitting error. Furthermore, Article 41 of the 1992 Constitution places a duty on citizens to cooperate with lawful state programs, but that duty is reciprocal. The state must act fairly, transparently, and honestly.
The NDC has failed this basic test.
Contrast this with the NPP’s record: systems-based governance, digitisation, and policy certainty. Under the NPP, reforms in public service delivery focused on clarity, predictability, and respect for citizens’ time and money. Governance is not noise; it is competence.
This matter is not a partisan exaggeration; it is a moral and administrative failure. When the government collects money unlawfully retained after an admitted mistake, the right action is immediate refund, not silence.
The demand is simple and lawful:
Refund the GH¢41 to every affected service personnel now.
Anything short of that is an abuse of trust.
Ghana’s youth deserve better. Ghana deserves better. And that better governance has always been the hallmark of the New Patriotic Party (NPP).
By: Bright Owusu Bempah
